Son of the Smith Hard Cider

After a week (or to be precise 9 days) off I am on the company shuttle heading into the office.

So what better time than now to quickly review my favorite alcoholic beverage that I imbibed on break.

That honor goes to the phenomenal 'Son of the Smith Hard Cider' produced in none other than Nagano, Japan but inspired by the amazing ciders of Portland, Oregon.

While they say they were inspired by Portland ciders, they certainly didn't stop there. And despite Portland, in particular the good folks at Rev Nat's Cider, producing world-class ciders, Son of the Smith has produced perhaps the tastiest, most well-rounded general purpose cider the world has ever known.

I was fortunate enough to enjoy four bottles of this amazing drink at Beer Cellar Sapporo located a few short minutes by Street Car from Susukino Street in downtown Sapporo.

After my first sip, I closed my eyes and nearly cried. The perfect balance of the cider's very subtle sweetness and crisp tartness were brought into perfect relief atop the lovely and velvety full mouthfeel. It was everything I'd ever wanted in a general purpose cider. That and the ambiance of the unpretentious bar paired together with whatever song that was playing at the time and my wife sitting beside me just made for one of the most perfect moments in my life so far.

This cider changed my life. So if you are able to get your hands on a few bottles of this stuff I recommend you buy as much as you can. It's not often that you can buy revelation packaged in a tastefully designed 330 ml brown bottle. Oh and buy some smoked Olympia Provision's sausage to go with it if you can. It's a match made in heaven.